When the Toronto Maple Leafs gave captain Auston Matthews his massive four-year, $53 million contract extension back during the 2023 offseason, many thought it was quite a lot of money. After all, at $13.25 million AAV per season, it made Matthews the highest paid AAV salary player at the time. But with the elite level scoring and production that he had provided year in and year out, it should still be worth it by the end of it.
However, after seeing Minnesota Wild star Kirill Kaprizov land his record-setting eight-year, $136 million contract extension on Tuesday, it has made the contract of Matthews an absolute bargain in comparison.